2010 Stanley Cup Finals: The Top 10 Blue-Collar Players

What a match up we saw in the Stanley Cup Final this season. It was also eerily quiet as Patrick Kane started the celebration and the Flyers fans were in disbelief of the goal.

By the time we get to the Stanley Cup Final, almost every player is battling through some form of fatigue or injury. The Stanley Cup Playoffs are the ultimate endurance test, which makes these blue-collar performances all the more special.

The No. 1 player on this list will be the recipient of the Golden Hard Hat Award. This honour is awarded based on analysis of the following statistics: Hits, blocked shots, giveaways, takeaways, and shots.

More weight is attached to blocked shots and the player's giveaway-to-takeaway ratio than shots and hits.

The players on this list are the warriors who will battle along the boards for loose pucks. They will become battered and bruised from blocking numerous shots, in order to save goals.

They will use those same battered and bruised bodies to punish their opponents physically. They will also use their defensive smarts to create valuable turnovers for their team.

While some of these players may produce offensively, not all of them show up on the score sheet consistently. Goals and assists were not taken into account in this listing.

Regardless of their offensive statistics, these are the best blue-collar players. At the end of the day, it is very difficult to decide on the order as there were some great performances to choose from.

These are the top 10 contenders for the Golden Hard Hat Award for the Stanley Cup Final of this year's NHL playoffs.

Scott Hartnell: Philadelphia Flyers

The 6’2”, 210-pound, 28-year-old left-winger from Canada plays for the Philadelphia Flyers.

He had 12 hits, two blocked shots, three takeaways, and 16 shots. He also provided five goals, four assists and an plus-four rating in six games.

In those six games he averaged 15:10 at even strength and 2:45 on the power play. His average ice time increased to 17:56 per game in the Cup Final from 16:59 in the Conference Final.

In the Stanley Cup Final, Hartnell showed that he can be an emotional leader for the Flyers when he puts his mind to it. He showed that he is a player that can take control of the physical side of the game, as well as scoring big goals.

He has the physical play of a third-line grinder and the hands of the second-line scorer. Four of his eight goals in this postseason came with his team trailing or tied on the scoreboard.

Marian Hossa: Chicago Blackhawks

The 6’1”, 210-pound, 31-year-old right-winger from Slovakia plays for the Chicago Blackhawks.

He had 11 hits, three blocked shots, four giveaways, nine takeaways, and 22 shots. He also provided one goal, three assists and an minus-one rating in six games.

In those six games he averaged 15:34 at even strength, 2:15 on the power play, 1:52 on the penalty kill. His average time on ice increased from 18:11 in the Conference Finals to 19:42 in the Cup Final.

The third time was the charm for Marian Hossa. After going to the Cup Final only to lose with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2008, and again with the Detroit Red Wings in 2009, his third try led him to a place where he could finally win a Cup.

Fittingly, Chicago is the first of his three trips to the final where he had a long term contract with the franchise.

Hossa does not get the credit he deserves for being a complete player. Many times during these playoffs I have seen him skate as hard as anyone to backcheck and take the puck away from the opposing team. Chicago has a special player in the fold for a long time.

Also it was a great moment when Toews came over with the Cup yelling "HOSS, HOSS, WHERE'S HOSS?!?!". I cannot think of any player on the Blackhawks that deserved to lift the Cup high over his head more than Hossa.

Braydon Coburn: Philadelphia Flyers

The 6’5”, 220-pound, 25-year-old defenceman from Canada plays for the Philadelphia Flyers.

He had 22 hits, 11 blocked shots, four giveaways, and nine shots. He also provided one assist, and a minus-nine rating in six games.

In those five games he averaged 23:08 at even strength, 1:53 on the power play, 2:16 on the penalty kill. His average time on ice was up to 27:18 in the Cup Final from 25:56 in the Conference Finals.

The fatigue in his game started to show in the Stanley Cup Final. He was a plus-two in round one against the New Jersey Devils. Then, he was a minus-one in the Conference Semi-Finals against the Boston Bruins. In the Conference Finals against the Cinderella Montreal Canadiens, he was a plus-six. Then the bottom dropped out in the Cup Final with a minus-nine rating.

Coburn did show that he can be and effective top-four defenceman in the NHL. However he will have to inject a little more Chris Pronger nastiness into his game to become a top blueliner. The physical tools are there, Coburn will need to learn the mental side of the game now.

Duncan Keith: Chicago Blackhawks

The 6’1”, 196-pound, 26-year-old defenceman from Canada plays for the Chicago Blackhawks.

He had six hits, 13 blocked shots, eight giveaways, seven takeaways, and 15 shots. He also provided one goal, six assists and a minus-one rating in six games.

In those six games he averaged 22:46 at even strength, 3:13 on the power play, 3:01 on the penalty kill. His average time on ice per game was 29:01 in the Stanley Cup Final. He also played very disciplined hockey in the Cup Final taking no penalties.

The former Detroit Red Wing put up four points in 13 games at the end of the regular season for the Flyers. But he seems to have found his NHL legs, and looked much like Henrik Zetterberg at times during the Cup Final.

The Flyers will be hoping that he can carry that play over into next season. But first he will need to rest his ailing back. At times it was very apparent that he was struggling through the pain, but he showed his grit and determination in spades.

As always, Timonen was a steady defensive presence for the Flyers in the Final. He does not throw big hits or put up big offensive numbers but he is capable of filling any role for the Flyers on the back end.

Dustin Byfuglien: Chicago Blackhawks

The 6’4”, 257-pound, 25-year-old left-winger from the United States plays for the Chicago Blackhawks.

He had 43 hits, one blocked shot, three giveaways, two takeaways, and 13 shots. He also provided three goals, three assists and a minus-one rating in six games.

In those six games he averaged 15:08 at even strength and 2:44 on the power play. His average time on ice was 17:55 in the Stanley Cup Final.

Byfuglien and Pronger was set to be an epic match up of size in front of the Flyers net, and they did not leave the fans wanting. Byfuglien was a physical force in the final with 43 hits in just six games.

More impressive is the discipline that Big Buff showed, only taking four minutes in penalties in the final.

No opposition had an answer for Byfuglien's size in this year's playoffs. The former eighth-round draft pick and converted defenceman showed he can be a key contributor on a Stanley Cup winner.

Byfuglien was a clutch player in this years playoffs. Out of his 11 goals, four were scored with him team tied and five were game winning goals. He is a large reason (pardon the pun) that the Blackhawks are Stanley Cup Champions.

Chris Pronger: Philadelpha Flyers

The 6’6”, 220-pound, 35-year-old defenceman from Canada plays for the Philadelphia Flyers.

He had 22 hits, 20 blocked shots, five giveaways, two takeaways, and 13 shots. He also provided four assists, and a plus-three rating in six games.

In those six games he averaged 23:05 at even strength, 4:10 on the power play, 2:29 on the penalty kill. His average time on ice in the Cup Final was 29:45.

In Stanley Cup Final the referees seemed to finally be calling Pronger for some of the things they had not been previously. He finished the series with 18 minutes in penalties. The Blackhawks did a good job of drawing penalties on Pronger.

It is also a double-bonus when Pronger is in the box. As you get the power play and perhaps the best shutdown defenceman in the league is not out there to kill it off.

When you see the numbers he put up throughout the playoffs, his impact as a blue-collar player cannot be denied.

His clutch play is evident, partially based on the fact that all four of his goals came with his team trailing or tied on the scoreboard.

Once again, Pronger has proven that he is a force to be reckoned with at the NHL level. Say what you will about him, but at the end of the day, he does his job on the ice like no other blueliner in the NHL today.

Chris Pronger has been awarded the Golden Hard Hat award for his tremendous blue-collar play in the Stanley Cup Final of the 2010 NHL Playoffs.